(WITHDRAWN) Design Thinking for Social Innovation

As government and public demands are increasing for greater effectiveness in the nonprofit sector; and as changes in political, economic, and social environments demand that human service organizations become more entrepreneurial and innovative in service provision and in their business models, it is essential that we train its workforce in applied and systematic methods for bringing about innovation. Among one of the most promising methods for bringing about creative solutions is Design Thinking. While Design thinking has been used in business organizations for a number of years, it is only now starting to gain some recognition in nonprofit and public sectors. Organizations are starting to see the value of this human-centered problem-solving approach, which allows problem-solvers to design with organizations and communities. With Design Thinking, individuals can deeply understand the people they are serving or are looking to serve, come up with numerous ideas, and create innovative solutions to address people's actual needs. This approach can be used to develop meaningful and useful responses to current challenges and can result in the creation of innovative services, products, and experiences. Design Thinking for Social Innovation workshop will provide participants with an overview of three major phases of the Design Thinking process - Inspiration, Ideation, and Implementation activities associated with each phase. It will introduce participants to the tools and techniques that can be used at each stage of the process. In addition to providing participants with introductory knowledge about this method, this workshop will give them an opportunity to apply it during a design sprint created around real-world challenges that social work practitioners face. Finally, participants will learn about a new instrument that the author and her co-author developed for assessing the effectiveness of Design Thinking. While the method has been used for a number of years, no systematic evidence exists of its effectiveness. Having a tool that allows to capture the outcomes of this method at the individual, team, and organizational levels will help practitioners see the value or this method and understand how return on investment looks like. Workshop outline: 1. Introduce participants to the Design thinking (DT) method. 2. Provide an overview of tools and techniques that can be used at Inspiration, Ideation, and Implementation phases of the DT process. 3. Allow participants to experience the DT process by participating in a DT Sprint. 4. Share a copy of a Design Thinking Effectiveness Instrument.